SKF announces closure of French bearing plant

SKF announces closure of French bearing plant SKF France has announced its intention to close its bearing factory in Thomery, close to Fontainebleau at Seine et Marne. The factory has 206 employees and a yearly turnover of close to MSEK 200. - This restructuring is necessary to improve the productivity and thus the competitiveness of the product range of small ball bearings and thin section bearings presently made at the Thomery plant, says Jean Tournoux, President of SKF France. The volumes manufactured at the Thomery plant would be transferred to other SKF factories, mainly in France. The cost of this restructuring will be included in the provisions to be taken for the fourth quarter, which were announced in the nine-month report in October this year. Göteborg, November 12, 2003 Aktiebolaget SKF (publ.) For further information, please contact: PRESS: Lars G Malmer, SKF Group Communication, mobile +46 705-37 1541, e-mail: Lars.G.Malmer@skf.com IR: Marita Björk, SKF Investor Relations, tel. +46 (0)31 3371994, e-mail: Marita.Bjork@skf.com Aktiebolaget SKF, SE-415 50 Göteborg, Sweden, tel. +46 (0)31 337 1000, fax +46 (0)31 337 2832, www.skf.com ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net The following files are available for download: http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2003/11/12/20031112BIT00690/wkr0001.doc http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2003/11/12/20031112BIT00690/wkr0002.pdf